Femicide in Iran on the Rise

Femicide in Iran: Iran has witnessed the horrifying murders of at least 9 women by their close male relatives in just 20 days, from May 23 to June 11, 2025.

Husbands, partners, or male relatives of the victims predominantly committed the murders. These women were killed for reasons as harrowing as requesting a divorce, seeking economic and social independence, or simply resisting coercion, discrimination, or robbery.

These murders are not merely stains on the hands of individual killers; they are glaring indictments of a misogynistic regime, where laws grant men ownership over women, decriminalize domestic violence, and define women as subordinates and property. A system where legal and social mechanisms are not designed to protect women, but rather to preserve patriarchal control.

While each of these murders is a human and social tragedy on its own, their rapid recurrence reveals a pattern—one rooted in state policies, patriarchal religious doctrine, and a repressive apparatus.

The victims were left without legal protection, without institutional support, and the fundamental right to safety even within their own homes. In several instances, these women had repeatedly reported threats before their deaths, yet the judicial and police systems remained silent, indifferent, or even complicit in perpetuating the violence.

The government’s silence, absence of preventive policies, and failure to pass effective legislation to combat violence against women have not only enabled these crimes but have also normalized them.